The Shore A test measures the hardness of soft materials such as rubber and elastomers. A durometer with a truncated cone indenter is pressed into the material with a spring force and the indentation depth is read as a Shore A value from 0 to 100. It is used to check seals, hoses, rubber linings and soft plastic parts.
Determined Values
- Shore A hardness
- Test points, reading time and mean
Applied Standards
- ASTM D2240 – Rubber property, durometer hardness
- EN ISO 868 – Plastics and ebonite, determination of indentation hardness by means of a durometer
Specimens
A specimen of sufficient thickness with flat, parallel faces is required; thin parts can be stacked as allowed by the standard.